Heavy Readings: Best of
Originally posted elsewhere August 2017
Killswitch Engage – Rise Inside
“Hatred is a weakness You become the victim” The cost of holding onto negativity is high. I cannot foresee anyone carrying hate and benefiting much from doing so. There are usually other means of processing these thoughts, and emotions. They have significance and can often be a valuable warning. They can also spur one to act, or to ask questions. They also can be outdated. Relics of experience passed. Even based on factors one cannot verify for oneself. When these dominate your perceptions, they limit you.
Veil of Maya - Unbreakable
"But just like a coward we flee from our hearts Now is the time to believe in yourself Have no fear how others think of you or will judge you For your greatness will silence them all" We often do not follow our hearts desires because of fear. Fear of the perception of us and our actions. This mechanic is not necessarily a bad thing. It protects us from acting in ways that will have us ostracized or exiled. It can also become a prison if we allow it too. You don't want to hurt someone in case they think negatively of you? Good. That's a desire that one should deny. This mechanic can also backfire. Abandoning aspirations because you are worried about perceptions of you, can be debilitating. There is a balance in this that must be found through trial and error. Hard work and quality results speak far louder than any detractors. For far longer too. It is also good to weed out those who carry your name in disregard for benign failures. Allow your attempts at fulfillment filter out the trash friends in your life. Try to define and follow your (harmless) desires. Who knows what greatness you could achieve.
Lamb of God – Omerta
"Cheaply venal, stupidly verbose A slip of the tongue, a slit of the throat Six feet under with no marker Keep my name from your mouth forever." Omerta refers to a code of silence kept amongst an organization. If one where to inform the law about illegal proceedings, they are to be executed. Depending on the degree of betrayal, family members could also be silenced. While this term originated within Mafia organizations, the technique has been adopted by many organizations in various forms. Businesses can be pressured to fire you for what you say, or decide internally to do so, to protect themselves. Certain communities will eject you for speaking out of line. Governments silence dissenters. Holding information about someone's past misbehavior gives you a lot of power over them. Is there (anyone/anything/any group) in your life who attacks people for changing? Who attempts to leverage shame to modify behaviour? Anything that would hand over your information for a cheap price? Perhaps it could pay to be wary of those who demonstrate this behaviour.
The Contortionist – The Parable
"You are the perceiver, that perceived the parable, the never-ending end." The parable being spoken of here can be interpreted as our shared existence. "The never-ending end" is an apt description of life within it, as all that lives will eventually end. Our individual passage through life is unique in many ways. We all have our own perceptions of this shared existence. This is a parable that we all perceive. A parable can also be described as a story designed to illustrate or teach some truth, religious principle, or moral lesson. This life we all share contains many lessons. We all learn a lot though our individual passages.
Arch Enemy - The World is Yours
"If you want the world Use your mind Take control." Making a change to your situation all begins in the mind. Taking control over one’s life can only begin with a choice to do so. Working to take back independence from those whom/what you depend on. For example, if you resent something you rely on, try and find another way. Another way to fulfil the need or find if it is necessary at all. This won’t be easy. There will be immense challenges on the path of change. However, if you made the right choices for yourself, and focus on your goals, it may help pull you through the difficulty of change. Suffering may be caused by any aspect of your moment-to-moment life. The experience of suffering however, is in the mind, so take control.